A survey of large-scale immersive displays

Abstract

Immersive displays generally fall within three categories: small-scale, single-user displays (head-mounted displays and desktop stereoscopic displays); medium-scale displays designed for small numbers of collaborative users (CAVEs, reality centres and power walls); and large-scale displays designed for group immersion experiences (IMAX, simulator rides, domes). Small- and medium-scale displays have received by far the most attention from researchers, perhaps due to their smaller size, lower cost and easy accessibility. Large-scale immersive displays present unique technical challenges largely met by niche manufacturers offering proprietary solutions. The rapidly growing number of largescale displays in planetariums, science centers and universities worldwide (275 theaters to date), coupled with recent trends towards more open, extensible systems and mature software tools, offer greater accessibility to these environments for research, interactive science/art application development, and visualization of complex databases for both student and public audiences. An industry-wide survey of leading-edge largescale immersive displays and manufacturers is provided with the goal of fostering industry/academic collaborations. Research needs include advancements in immersive display design, real-time spherical rendering, real-time group interactive technologies and applications, and methods for aggregating and navigating extremely large scientific databases with imbedded physical/astrophysical simulations.